“David Cameron was branded a coward last night for refusing to debate on TV with senior Brexit campaigners. Despite claiming the case to stay in the EU is overwhelming, the Prime Minister will take part only in interviews and question and answer sessions with voters. His opponents suspect he fears a clash over open borders when thousands of migrants are heading across the Mediterranean to Europe” – Daily Mail
“Trust in David Cameron’s position on Europe has dropped further in a new poll which suggests that the referendum is once more neck and neck. A YouGov poll for The Times has found that the Remain and Leave vote are tied at 41 per cent, with 13 per cent saying that they do not know and four per cent declaring they would not vote” – The Times (£)
>Today:
>Yesterday:
“Britain’s Armed Forces would be more effective outside the European Union, 12 former generals and admirals claim today. Throwing their weight behind the Brexit campaign, the former military top brass say the EU has become ‘intrusive’, ‘out of control’ and ‘not fit for purpose’… General Sir Michael Rose says service personnel are in danger of becoming ‘no more than civilians in uniform’” – Daily Mail
“The highly respected Institute for Fiscal Studies accused the Brexit campaign on Wednesday of peddling ‘clearly absurd’ figures suggesting Britain would save large sums of money if it left the EU. Rather than saving £350m a week, or £18bn a year, from Brexit, the IFS research suggests a vote to leave would cost £20bn to £40bn a year and require additional austerity, lasting into the next decade, if the government still wanted to eliminate the deficit” – Financial Times
“You underestimate Jacob Rees-Mogg at your peril… ‘Chairman, gentlemen,’ he said, nodding at the flunkeys next to Dr Carney. ‘Good morning.’ These pleasantries done, he reached for his poignard. ‘In general elections you do not give a view on parties’ economic policies,’ he said. ‘Why not?’” – Patrick Kidd, The Times (£)
“About a third of Labour supporters look set to vote for Britain to leave the European Union. The Leave campaign could double this figure, thereby helping to snatch victory in the referendum, if it were to hammer home one key message: each vote cast in favour of leaving the EU is a vote nearer to getting a new prime minister” – Frank Field, The Times (£)
“Boris has brought nothing to the Leave campaign. If anything, he has pushed undecideds towards Dave… Leave has lost its way. Gove is banging on about giving prisoners iPads, Duncan-Smith just looks bald and cross, and Boris is playing the fool. As much as the Leave contingent wants to distance itself from Farage faster than it could run from a hooker with herpes, at least Farage is authentic” – Katie Hopkins, MailOnline
“Nigel Farage was caught on camera telling Ukip supporters to ‘bully people’ into voting for Brexit… As the bus moved slowly through the town centre, he told the crowd: ‘Those who believe in an independent Britain, you are a part of the People’s Army. Go out and persuade people, bully people, go down the pubs, the clubs, your family and get them to vote to take back our country’” – Daily Mail
“Recriminations are growing among campaigners for a British exit from the EU who say the official Vote Leave group is faltering and risks ‘losing us this referendum’… Arron Banks, co-chairman of Leave. EU, the UKIP-linked rival to the official Out organisation, said: ‘Vote Leave’s woeful campaign is losing us this referendum. It is time for them to put aside their pathetic prejudices and start using Nigel Farage’” – Financial Times
“Labour has edged closer to supporting the ‘snooper’s charter’ after the home secretary, Theresa May, agreed to order an independent review of proposed state surveillance powers. Andy Burnham, the shadow home secretary, who had raised concerns about the wide-ranging nature of so-called bulk collection powers in the investigative powers bill, welcomed the concession” – Guardian
“She is famous for her feminist views and her long-running campaign against pictures of topless women in tabloid newspapers. Yesterday, however, Harriet Harman found herself accused of hypocrisy for lavishing praise on Kim Kardashian. Miss Harman, former deputy leader of the Labour Party, applauded the publicity-hungry celebrity for her ‘bravery and pioneering spirit’ but continued her attack on Page 3 girls, criticising ‘male newspaper editors’ for using young women as ‘fodder’” – Daily Mail